Family of Rotary

On July 21, Tracey Mitchem's grandson Elijah had heart surgery at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center. The family needed a place to stay for almost two weeks during his recovery, and the Ronald McDonald House had a waiting list.

Mary, a member of the Rotary Club of Cincinnati, opened her home to a family she had never met. Tracey belongs to the Rotary Club of Southwest Florida, a thousand miles away. Two clubs, two strangers, one shared idea: Service Above Self.

Tracey later visited the Cincinnati club in person to say thank you in a meeting.

Our club is part of that same network. If a member needed help a thousand miles from home, the family of Rotary would show up here too.

Source: Rotary International's blog, blog.rotary.org, https://blog.rotary.org/2026/08/27/if-someone-asked-me-what-is-rotary-id-tell-them-this-story/